RIYADH: The all-electric Formula E series announced the rescheduling of its Saudi Arabian season-opener on Thursday, with the championship now due to start in Mexico City in January.
The double-header in Jeddah was originally scheduled for December 18-19 but is now pencilled in for April 16 and 17 as the season’s sixth and seventh races.
The Mexico City round will kick off the campaign on January 16.
“I guess the news which may not come as a surprise to anybody is that we are looking to change the order of the racing calendar,” Formula E chief executive Jeff Dodds told reporters in a video call citing “the conflict ongoing in the Middle East” and the logistical impact.
“We will no longer start the season in Jeddah in December as planned,” he said.
“We will schedule Jeddah in for the Friday and Saturday of 16th, 17th of April. And in order to accommodate that change we will move the Sanya race (in China) to the 3rd of April, two weeks forward.”
That change also avoids a clash with the Chinese Formula One Grand Prix being held in Shanghai on April 18 and compresses the calendar from a 2026-27 one to a championship held within the space of seven months in 2027.
